The Skinny
(aka Back of the Book Summary in a Sentence)
Jules, a scholar, must form an uneasy alliance with the scavenger Amelia as they try to uncover the treasures hidden in an ancient alien race’s temples.
Nutritional Value
(aka What’s Good)
This chapter taught me that if I’m ever getting robbed and somehow manage to get the upper hand, I need to steal my attempted robbers’ shoes and pants so they have a harder time chasing after me. I feel like this is a valuable life lesson.
Freezer Burn
(aka What’s Bad)
I’m pretty sure the authors of this book pitched it to their publisher as “Indiana Jones in space.” The idea is promising, but the execution leaves a lot to be desired as it turned out to be more like the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull instead of Raiders of the Lost Ark. The chapter was definitely exciting. However, the thrills felt cheap and the dialogue felt forced.
Lingering Aftertaste
(aka My Prediction)
So, this technologically advanced ancient alien civilization called the Undying goes extinct, and Earth decides to send humans to the Undying’s planet to gather the aliens’ tech and treasures in hopes of reversing the damage humans have done to Earth. I’m pretty sure this is going to backfire. After all, the Undying went extinct for a reason. Maybe the alien tech killed off the aliens and when the humans bring it back, the tech will end up endangering Earth’s population too. One can only hope.
Taste Test Verdict
(aka Would I Read More?)
It’s a sad day when I have say no to Indiana Jones in space, and I guess today is a sad day. I really can’t get over how fake not just the dialogue between the characters sounds, but also Jules’ internal monologue. It drags down the flow of the story, making it feel uncomfortable and clunky.
Memorable Morsel
(aka Quotable Quote)
When NASA announced their plans to send people to Mars, this was legitimately one of my first thoughts.
I wonder if they name a major landmark after you if you’re one of the first people to die on a new planet.
Would you travel to a dangerous alien world to have something big named after you? Sound off in the comments below!
Get Unearthed
Gwen thinks that it’s as close to magic as humans can get when a blank Word document is filled with groups of letters, and those groups of letters turn into lines, and those lines turn into a whole new world.
When Gwen isn’t reading or writing, she’s drinking boba milk tea and singing along to Steven Universe. You should sing along with her.